The Turnbull Government has capped public service wage increases at 2%, despite calling for employers to give bigger pay increases to address near record-low wage growth.

The public sector will now also be subject to harsh new regulations which reduce barriers to the use of labour hire and contracting work, meaning there will be even fewer good, steady jobs in the public service.

The capped increases will see public sector workers struggle to keep up with the cost of living, with electricity, health and housing costs are all rising well above this mean spirited cap

Prime Minister Turnbull pays his own staff $840,000 over the maximum public service pay rate, but won’t give other public servants a raise. It’s disgraceful.

The Turnbull Government has hypocritically passed up an opportunity to practice what it preaches and give its employees a fair wage rise.

This arrogant, arbitrary and unfair cap on pay demonstrates that working people need the power to negotiate better outcomes. We need to change the rules to give power back to working people.

The Turnbull Government says it has $65 billion to give corporations a tax cut but it won’t offer the front line workers who deliver public services a fair pay deal

Government begging employers to increase wages will never produce the wage growth which Australian workers need.

Workers united in strong unions is the only way that we will break out of stalled wage growth.

Worksite

Union Aid Abroad

Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA is the overseas aid and development agency of the ACTU. Our work aims to build self-reliance through support to educational and training projects for workers and their organisations in the developing world.